Anna Case
American soprano opera singer (1887-1984)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Anna Case (October 29, 1887 - January 7, 1984) was an American operatic lyric soprano. She recorded with Thomas Alva Edison, who used her voice extensively in "tone tests" of whether a live audience could tell the difference between the actual singer and a recording. In addition to recordings for Edison Records on both phonograph cylinder and Diamond Disc, Case recorded for Victor and Columbia Records, and made sound film for Vitaphone.
Anna Case | |
|---|---|
| |
| Background information | |
| Born | October 29, 1887 |
| Origin | United States |
| Died | January 7, 1984 (aged 96) New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Occupation | Opera singer |
| Years active | 1909–1931 |
Biography
Case was born in Clinton, New Jersey, on October 29, 1887,[1][2][3][4] and educated by vocal trainer Augusta Öhrström-Renard in New York. Case made her debut in 1909 at the New Theatre in New York as the Dutch Boy in Werther, and from 1909 to 1916 was a member of the Metropolitan Opera Company. In her first American performances, she created the roles of Sophie in Der Rosenkavalier (1913) and Feodor in Boris Godunov (1913).[5] She sang Olympia in Tales of Hoffmann, Mimi in La Boheme, and Micaela in Carmen.[6]
Case wrote the music and lyrics to several songs during the 1910s and 20s.[6][7] She made her film debut in the 1919 silent drama film The Hidden Truth,[8] and sang one of her original songs in the 1926 Vitaphone short La Fiesta.[7] She also appeared in documentaries about sound recording. In 1930, she recorded "Just Awearyin' for You" by Frank Lebby Stanton and Carrie Jacobs-Bond.[9]
On July 18, 1931, Case married ITT Corporation executive Clarence H. Mackay at St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church in Roslyn, New York, and retired from the stage shortly afterwards.[10][11] She began to write songs more prolifically in 1936, penning over 50 in two years,[12][7] and sang occasionally at social events. Her husband died in November, 1938, and Case died in New York City on January 7, 1984, aged 96.[11]
Upon her death, she bequeathed her 167.97-carat (33.59 g) Colombian emerald ring and Cartier necklace containing more than 2,000 diamonds, 35 emeralds and an oval cabochon-cut Columbian emerald of 167.97 carat to the Smithsonian Institution.[13]
1912 Metropolitan Opera premiere of Boris Godunov with Anna Case, Marie Duchène, Adamo Didur as Boris Godunov, and Leonora Sparkes- 1915 Edison recording of "La sonnambula. Ah! Non credia mirarti", performed by Case
